LITMIR.BIZ

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longed for those happily-ever-after and love-of-a-lifetime dreams Connor cynically mocked.

      “My aunt and uncle never believed you loved Emily,” she said, disappointed. “Everything you’ve said proves them right.”

      “Your aunt and uncle weren’t right about me—no matter what they think.”

      Dead certainty ricocheted in his voice, and Kelsey regretted the tack she’d taken. Too late to back down and far too curious about what made Connor tick, she pressed, “Either you believe in love or you don’t. You can’t have it both ways.”

      “I just don’t want to see Emily get hurt. That’s why I’mhere.”

      She opened her mouth, ready to push further, when Connor pulled the handle on the driver’s-side door. “I’ll be right back.”

      Kelsey grabbed his arm. “Wait! Where are you going?”

      “To check the rear lot. Todd might have pulled in back there while we’ve been watching the front.” With one foot already on the asphalt and refusing to meet her gaze, Connor seemed more interested in escaping her questions.

      “I’m coming with you.” She scrambled to unlock the passenger door. When she sensed an oncoming protest, she said, “Partners, remember? You’re the one who dragged me along. You aren’t leaving me now.”

      “Forget it! He’ll recognize you.”

      “Todd knows what you look like, too,” she argued as she turned back toward him.

      “Fine,” he bit out as he dropped back into the seat, “but there’s something you have to do first.”

      Thanks to her questions, a noticeable tension vibrated through Connor, evident in his clenched jaw and the taut muscles in the arm he’d braced against the wheel. But the tension gradually changed, not easing, but instead focusing to a fine, definitive point—one that seemed wholly centered on her.

      His intense gaze traveled over her hair, her face, her mouth…The gold flecks in his green eyes glowed, and Kelsey’s skin tingled as if warmed by his touch. Surely he wouldn’t try to kiss her. Not here, not now! Time raced by with each rapid beat of her heart, a single question echoing in her veins.

      Why didn’t he kiss her? Right here, right now—

      Her pulse pounded in her ears, drowning out the sound of passing traffic. The heat shimmering on her skin could put the mirage hovering above the asphalt to shame. Shifting his body in the driver’s seat, Connor eased closer. The scent of his aftershave, a clean fragrance that called to mind ocean breezes and sun-kissed sand, drew her in. Like waves rushing to the shore, helpless to resist the undeniable pull, she reached for him…

      But instead of a roll on the beach, Kelsey crashed against the shoals, her pride battered against the rocks when Connor suddenly turned away. He twisted his upper body between the seats and reached into the back. “Here, take this.”

      Kelsey stared dumbly at the baseball hat he held.

      “See if you can cover your hair.”

      Her hand was still raised in an attempt to reach out and capture a passion obviously only she felt. An admission of her willingness to make a fool of herself.

      Kelsey jerked the hat from Connor, eager to grab hold of anything to save face. “Do you really think this will make a difference?”

      “A huge one.” Almost reluctantly he added, “Your hair is unforgettable.”

      But he’d forget all about her and her hair once Emily was a free woman again. Unforgettable. Yeah, right.

      Kelsey didn’t realize she’d spoken the words until Connor murmured, “It’s the kind of hair a man fantasizes about. Trust me.”

      But she couldn’t. She’d nearly made a fool of herself seconds ago, and in case she ever forgot, she had the living, breathing epitome of Connor’s perfect woman as her cousin. Kelsey couldn’t compare; she never had.

      Jerking back toward the door to put as much room as possible between them, she shook back her hair and pulled it away from her face with sharp, almost painful movements. Unable to hide behind her long locks, she felt exposed, vulnerable. Even more so when Connor’s gaze remained locked on her features.

      “How’s that?” she asked, as she twisted her hair into a bun and shoved the bright red Diamondbacks cap into place. When Connor continued to stare, Kelsey fisted her hands in her lap to keep from yanking off the ridiculous hat. Finally, she demanded, “What?”

      Shaking his head, Connor seemed to snap out of his stupor. “I hadn’t realized how much you look like Emily.”

      His words hit like a punch in the stomach. Look like Emily? Not a chance. She’d seen the disappointment in the Wilsons’ faces when they first saw her. If Emily and Aileen were beautiful Barbie dolls, then Kelsey was clearly supposed to be Skipper, a younger, blonder version. But she looked nothing like her cousins, a point driven home at every Wilson function, with every meeting of their friends and associates. The surprise—if not flat-out disbelief—when Kelsey was introduced as one of the Wilsons.

      I hope they had her DNA tested, Kelsey had heard one uninformed, high-society snob whisper. It wouldn’t surprise me if that girl ended up being a con artist out for the family fortune.

      Kelsey had struggled to hold her head high and hold back the tears when she’d wanted to lash out at the woman. She was every bit her mother’s daughter, not her father’s, and inside she was as much a Wilson as Gordon, Aileen and Emily. But outside—where it counted—she couldn’t be more different.

      “Give me a break!” She tried to laugh off the remark, but the fake sound stuck in her throat. “Emily and I look nothing alike! She’s tall and thin and blond and—beautiful!”

      Her voice broke on the last word, and Kelsey had never been so close to hitting anyone. Giving in to the impulse, she socked Connor in the shoulder. She had a quick impression of dense muscle and bone, but he caught her hand before she could fool herself into thinking she could do more damage.

      “Hey!” A quick tug of her arm had her falling against him. “So are you!”

      “Tall? Blond?” Kelsey shot back sarcastically.

      “Beautiful!” he retorted.

      “But I’m not—”

      “Not Emily?” he interjected softly. He brushed an escaping strand of hair—her unforgettable hair—back from her face, and the touch she’d only imagined became reality as he traced his index finger over her eyebrow, across her cheekbone, and skimmed the corner of her mouth. Heat and hunger combined with a tenderness that snuck beneath her defenses. “There’s more than one ideal for beauty, Kelsey.”

      Still pressed against his muscular chest, she knew Connor was the epitome of masculine beauty for her, and she had the devastating feeling that would never change, even years from now. He was the best of the best, and she was a long shot, the dark horse.

      “Stop it,” she whispered furiously.

      “You don’t have to be Emily. You can just be yourself.”

      The deep murmur of his voice reached inside and touched that vulnerable place, but this time instead of opening old wounds, his words offered a healing balm. And meeting his gaze, Kelsey realized he understood her vulnerability in a way no one else could because he’d felt the same way. He’d never been good enough to date the daughter of the wealthy Wilsons, and she had never felt good enough to be one of the wealthy Wilsons.

      “Connor…” Just one word, his name spoken in a hushed whisper, broke the connection. He blinked, or maybe Kelsey did, because when she looked again, his sexy smile was back in place, all sense of vulnerability gone. “Except for right now. Right now you have to be someone Todd won’t recognize.”

      “Right.” Kelsey pulled back, and

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